Posted By:
MorrieI was also concerned about the "nesting" issue Julie mentioned when I cracked my first GAI holders (which is why I started with 1959 topps commons). Here's what I found worked.
First, you have to do some relatively serious damage to the holder because of the nest. You don't want to do this anywhere near the card, though, so you're going to want to start the pain up around the label. I picked a spot near the top corner and took a pair of pliers to the edge. I squeezed. HARD. With a slight twisting motion toward the top face of the holder. Pretty quickly, about 1/2-3/4 of an inch of both the top and bottom piece of the slabs cracked off.
What you're trying to do is open a seam where you can slide a flat-head screwdriver in between the top and bottom halves, somewhere in the label area. Once you've got the screwdriver in around the label, just start prying the holder apart. Stay away from the card (you'll end up wanting to work around the edges to free the card once you have the top good and cracked, but don't ever let more than 1/4-1/2 inch of the screwdriver get inside the holder), go slowly and carefully, and you should be able to get the holder apart without damaging the card.
I would encourage you to practice this a couple of times with less valuable cards, but I've not had any problems with it.
Happy Holidays,
Morrie